


a touch of danger

by loading_username



Category: Velvet Goldmine
Genre: Chance Meetings, Dystopia, Ficlet, Gen or Pre-Slash, Hurt Arthur Stuart, It's Not Paranoia If They're Really Out To Get You, Light Angst, M/M, Minor Injuries, Non-Graphic Violence, Past Relationship(s), Post-Canon, Post-Movie(s), Vignette, as in Arthur was a bit roughed up by Tommy Stone's people, kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:21:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,032
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28085370
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loading_username/pseuds/loading_username
Summary: Arthur hadn't planned to question Tommy Stone about his connection to Brian Slade. He did, though, and now he was dealing with the consequences.
Relationships: Arthur Stuart/Curt Wild
Kudos: 6





	a touch of danger

Arthur made sure to keep his head down as he walked through the bustling streets of New York at a hurried pace, his grip on the strap of his messenger bag tight and shoulders hunched. Every few minutes he risked a quick look at his surroundings before his eyes went back to the pavement under his feet.

"Hey, you! The reporter!"

The last part made Arthur freeze, his heart threatening to burst out of his chest with each beat as he hugged his messenger bag closer to his body. He recognized the voice almost at once, but that only served to make his anxiety grown. He turned slowly, finding himself face to face with Curt Wild one more time, only days after their last chance meeting in the back room of some seedy bar.

"Hey. I thought that was- what the hell happened to your face?"

Arthur lifted a hand, wincing as soon as it made contact with the bruised skin around his half-shut eye. "It's nothing."

"You sure about that? 'Cause I know all about black eyes and that looks pretty painful."

"Yeah, it is," Arthur murmured, averting his eyes.

"So, what happened?" Curt asked, an eyebrow arched.

"You could say I annoyed someone with my inquiries and this was the result," He finished, pointing at his face with a self-deprecating smile.

Curt cooked his head, stays of his brittle blonde hair waving gently with the breeze. "I didn't know being a reporter was so dangerous."

"Yeah, well," Arthur replied eloquently with a shrug. There was a difference between being a reporter and a journalist, but it didn't seem like something worth mentioning at the moment. Or something Curt would even care about.

He was forced to drop the Brian/Tommy story, and while no other media reported anything about what happened after the concert, that didn't change the fact dozens of persons heard his foolish question and rumors were slowly spreading about the connection between Brian Slade and Tommy Stone.

The truth was, it would be ridiculously easy for them to kill him as revenge. Nobody knew who started the rumor, so he didn't even have the flimsy protection of being in the limelight. It was a terrifying thought, but that was what Reynolds' America was like. They may not be able to stop the truth from coming to light, but they could punish the person guilty of starting it all.

The weight of Curt's deep blue eyes made him avert his gaze, and he used the opportunity to let his eyes dart around. The last thing he needed was to be seen out on the streets speaking with Curt Wild of all people. What if they thought it was Curt who told him? He couldn't risk Reynolds' people turning their attention to him as well. If they were Reynolds' people. If they were Brian's he probably wouldn't hurt Curt.

Still, that was not a chance he was willing to take. Arthur would never forgive himself if something happened to Curt, all because he had a brief moment of stupid bravery- if it could even be called that.

"Right," Curt snorted. "And does it have anything to do with Brian?"

Arthur turned wide hazel eyes at him. He opened his mouth but had to close it again when no words came out. Why the bloody hell couldn't he just say no? He risked another look around.

"I- I'd rather not speak about that out here," Arthur murmured, not quite meeting his gaze.

"Alright. Let's go, then."

His head snapped up again. "What?"

"You said you don't want to speak here, which implies you're willing to talk somewhere else," Curt finished with a grin.

"I don't think-"

"You're not getting out of this."

Arthur bit his lip, fingers playing nervously with the strap of his bag. This was a bad idea. It was a terrible idea. But it was Curt.

"Come on."

He let out a pained hiss as Curt grabbed him by the arm. The other man let go, his narrowed blue eyes fixed on his face.

"You didn't just get punched in the face, did you?"

Arthur shook his head after a moment's pause, lower lip caught between his teeth. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Curt clench his jaw as he glared at the crowd.

"Let's go," Curt barked, keeping his hands to himself this time.

"Where are we going?"

"My place is a few blocks from here. You look like you need to lie down or something."

Arthur's heart chose that moment to speed up again. Under normal circumstances, he would have said yes in a heartbeat. Because it was Curt, and he was inviting him back to his place. This was straight out of one of his teenage dreams. Or any of his dreams, really. Minus the government blokes hunting him, of course.

He chewed his thumb, looking down the street. Was he truly going to risk his life and _Curt's_ if he was seen going with him?

What a foolish question. As if he ever was or ever will be able to say no to Curt Wild.

"Okay," Arthur murmured. He told himself again and again that the only reason Curt was doing this was that he wanted to know what happened and because he suspected Brian was involved somehow. It was always Brian. How could he even think of competing with him in any way?

Curt didn't even know who Arthur was. He was just some reporter who discovered the truth about Brian Slade and nothing more.

Arthur grimaced as he followed him. The American Government was chasing him and he was worried about Curt Wilde remembering the night they spent together on that rooftop years and years ago.

He wasn't even surprised anymore by how pathetic he was.

Arthur almost jumped when he felt Curt's hand coming to rest on his back as the man guide him along. He couldn't stop himself from leaning into the touch a little, his cheeks turning warm as he looked at Curt out of the corner of his eye. A smile tugged at the corner of his lips when Curt's hand remained in place.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written years and years ago, but not posted before. I found it when I was sorting through my documents and so I did some editing and rewriting before posting it. I hope you enjoyed it! Also, thank you very much to the pople who read and left kudos and even one comment in my first Velvet Goldmine fic.
> 
> This is unbetaed and I'm not a native speaker, so please feel free to point out any mistake you may find.


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